Militant
For the British Marxist newspaper, see Militant. For the British political organization see Militant Tendency. For the newspaper of the US Socialist Workers Party see The Militant.The word
militant has come to refer to any individual or party engaged in aggressive physical or verbal combat, normally for a cause. Journalists often use
militant as a neutral term for soldiers who do not belong to an established
military. Typically, a
militant engages in
violence as part of a claimed struggle for achievement of a political goal.
Popular usage sometimes sees "militants" as synonymous with
terrorists, though perhaps characterised with a slightly less
loaded term. The term "militant state" colloquially refers to a state which holds an aggressive posture in support of an
ideology or cause. In
French the term "militant" retains a more moderate meaning of "activist" which it formerly had in English.
Persons described as
militants have usually enrolled and trained for
service in a particular cause. Militants may fill their ranks either by
enlistment or by
conscription. The term usually implies aggressive and vigorous support of a cause, as in the phrases
militant protest or
Church militant. Some militant views have an inherent implication of intolerance. The work and support of militants commonly occurs within the limits of international law, humanity, and
civil disobedience.
The term
militant can describe those who aggressively and violently promote a political philosophy in the name of a movement (and sometimes have an extreme solution for their goal). Sample goals of modern militants may include establishing
dictatorships or establishing a single
world government. The various movements that seek to apply militancy as a solution, or who use militancy to rationalize their solutions for issues in the modern world seldom share common tactics. Traits shared by many militants include: # employing force or violence directly, either in offence or in defense# justifying the use of force using the ideological rhetoric of their particular group
A
militant view sometimes constitutes an extremist's position. A person or group in a psychologically
militant state expresses a physically aggressive posture while in support of an
ideology or of a cause.
Potential legal restrictions
One could argue that those resisting a foreign military occupation do not merit the label
terrorists because their acts of political violence against the military targets of a foreign occupier do not violate
international law. Protocol 1 of the
Geneva Conventions gives lawful combatant status to those engaging in armed conflicts against alien (or foreign)
occupation,
colonial domination and
racist régimes. Non-uniformed
guerrillas also gain combatant status if they carry
arms openly during
military operations. Protocol 1 does not legitimise attacks on
civilians by militants who fall into these categories, however.
The word
militant comes from the
15th Century Latin "militare" meaning "to serve as a
soldier". The related modern concept of the
militia as a defensive
organization against invaders grew out of the Anglo-Saxon "fyrd". In times of crisis, the
militiaman left his
civilian duties and became a soldier until the emergency was over, when he returned to his
civilian status.
The
mass media often uses the term
"militant" in the context of
terrorism. Journalists often apply the term
militant to movements using
terrorism as a tactic. The mass media also has repeatedly called terrorist organizations
militant groups or
radical militants. The terms often serve to avoid placing the label
terrorism on individuals or groups who have not actually committed violent acts.
Newspapers, magazines, and other information sources may deem
militant a neutral term, whereas
terrorist conventionally indicates disapproval of the behavior of the individual or organization so labelled, regardless of the motivations for such behavior.
Militant, othertimes, can refer to any individual engaged in
warfare, a fight,
combat, or generally serving as a
soldier.
Militant as Wikipedia euphemism for terrorist
The editors of
Wikipedia have determined that the word
terrorist has no denotative meaning and has no place in an encyclopedia except as a slur or attribution within a quote [
1]. Therefore no one, for any act, however severe, can be labeled objectively as a terrorist. Wikipedia policy instead recommends that individuals that have expressed the intent to target and kill civilians noncombatants for political ends be called
militants and their organizations be called
paramilitary organizations. For example:
*
Osama Bin Laden is a militant.
*
Al Qaeda is a paramilitary organization.
*The
Beslan school hostage crisis is a battle executed by a band of Chechen paramilitaries.
*Militants who were allegedly members of the Al Qaeda paramilitary organization hijacked
United Airlines Flight 175 and flew it into the World Trade Center, instantaneously killing 664 people.
*The
September 11, 2001 attacks are a militant incident.
*
Timothy McVeigh was a militant.
Militants occur across the
political spectrum, including
white supremacists,
separatists,
abortion opponents, and
environmentalists. Examples of
left-wing,
right-wing, and
special interest militants include militant
reformers, militant
feminists, militant
animal rights advocates, and
anarchists.
Fundamendalist Christian militants engage in constant warfare against the
Christian church's enemies (though
fundamentalism itself does not, by definition, class as militant). The phrase
militant Islam can suggest (excessively) violent and aggressive political activity by Islamic individuals, groups, movements, or governments.
The label
militant often becomes attached to
Palestinians who express the intention of committing or supporting violent actions. Such actions may include attacks on Israeli
soldiers and Israeli
civilians on behalf of Palestinian
nationalism and of Palestinian
statehood; or in attempts to
annihilate Israel. Also, there is militant activity to protest the occupation by Israeli forces. The term
guerrilla may serve a similar purpose. In the opinion of many Israelis, some media groups use the term
militant (in the context of Israel) to describe people whom those same groups would call
terrorists in the context of any other country. Such Israelis may hold the opinion that those media groups do this out of bias, to downplay the severity of attacks on Israelis.
Compare and contrast these related articles:
*
Activist - individuals in intentional action to bring about social or political change.
*
Anarchists - Philosophy that opposes the existence of a State and favor what they perceive to be voluntary relationships between individuals
*
Black Muslim - religious and political organization founded in the United States by Wallace Fard Muhammad in 1930 with a declared aim of "resurrecting" the spiritual, mental, social and economic condition of the black man and woman of America and the world.
*
Belligerent - one of a contracting parties in a conflict.
*
Black Panther Party - revolutionary Black nationalist organization in the United States that formed in the late 1960s
*
Church militant (Ecclesia Militans) - Christians who are living.
*
combat or fighting- purposeful conflict between one or more persons, often involving violence and intended to establish dominance over the opposition.
*
combatant - a soldier or guerrilla member who is waging war.
*
crusader - Warriors in a series of several military campaignsâ€"usually sanctioned by the Papacyâ€"that took place during the 11th through 13th century. Used contemporarily to describe people that attack Islam, whether perceived or real.
*
demonstrator - An individual who is publicly displaying the common opinion of an activist group, often economically, political, or socially, by gathering in a crowd, usually at a symbolic place or date, associated with that opinion.
*
extremist - term used to describe either ideas or actions thought by critics to be hyperbolic and unwarranted.
*
fundamentalism - anti-modernist movements in various religions.
*
Insurgent - an armed rebellion by any irregular armed force that rises up against an established authority, government, administration or occupation.
*
Islamofascist - controversial area which examines the parallels and intersections between various forms of neofascism and contemporary religions and religious movements.
*
Malcolm X - prominent black nationalist leaders born in the United States and advocated black pride and identity politics.
*
man-at-arms - medieval term for a soldier, almost always a professional.
*
mercenary - soldier who fights, or engages in warfare primarily for private gain, usually with little regard for ideological, national or political considerations.
*
military - any armed force, it generally refers to a permanent, professional force of soldiers or guerrillas.
*
Militant Islam - Used by Western political commentators to describe the ideologies of groups viewed as participating in Islamic terrorism.
*
Militant Tendency - Trotskyist faction within the Labour Party in the UK, accused of entryist tactics. They were most powerful during the 1970s and 1980s.
*
partisan - member of a lightly-equipped irregular military force formed to oppose control of an area by a foreign power or by an army of occupation.
*
protester - expresses relatively overt reaction to events or situations: sometimes in favour, more often opposed.
*
rebel - individuals who participate in rebellions
*
Reform Movement - kind of social movement that aims to make gradual change, or change in certain aspects of the society rather than rapid or fundamental changes.
*
rioter - people in crowds committing crimes or acts of violence
*
soldier - person who has enlisted with, or has been conscripted into, the armed forces of a sovereign country and has undergone training and received equipment to defend that country or its interests.
*
war - state of widespread conflict between states, organisations, or relatively large groups of people, which is characterised by the use of violent, physical force between combatants or upon civilians.
*
warrior - person habitually engaged in combat. In tribal societies, warriors often form a caste or class of their own.
*
zealot - An individual that is
zealous on behalf of God.
